Monday, May 9 2005 18:47 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: Attributing IAS officer L V Saptarishi's charges against two Election Commissioners to a "quid pro quo" agreement between RJD Minister Raghuvansh Prasad Singh and him, BJP today (May 9, 2005) demanded that all documents pertaining to him one week prior to his controversial letter be made public.

"It now transpires that this official wrote against two members of the Election Commission on May 6, 2005. Around the same time, RJD (Rashtriya Janata Dal) Minister Raghuvansh Prasad Singh was endeavouring to manage that the Director General, CAPART, (Saptarishi) be given a three-year tenure ensuring through a quid pro quo for this officer who would get a term of two and a half years after retirement," BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) general secretary and spokesman Arun Jaitley alleged at a press conference in New Delhi.

Referring to the "appreciation" given by him to Saptarishi, the former Law Minister alleged that the Government had leaked the Annual Confidential Reports (ACR) to "add to the credibility of this dubious claim."

"This could not have happened without the active connivance of the other departments of the Government, which were dealing with these ACRs," he said.

The BJP leader expressed serious concern over the "increased tendency on the Government's part to disparage various institutions including constitutional authorities" and alleged a "systematic pattern".

Citing several instances, including the attack on the Supreme Court for its Jharkhand verdict, Jaitley said, "The Prime Minister is not merely a silent spectator to this subversion and attack on institutions. This Government is an active participant in perpetuating this."